Adetatu

Important information about this blog

2013-06-20T13:01:00.001-07:00

I will no longer be posting anything to this blog.

I now have a new website/blog at this address www.adetatu.com

See you at the new venue and thank you for your continued support.

Ade

Nearly there

2013-06-14T13:22:00.000-07:00

After much procrastination (apologies for the delay) I've started working on my new site and it will be live next Friday.

Here are a few images from the last few weeks of work.

See you next week on my brand new website.

Something for the weekend 27

2013-05-18T10:34:00.002-07:00

Another week passes by quickly.
Managed some work on the new site, but I still have much to do and would rather it was 100% before you guys see it. Other than that I'm getting prepared for my trip to Elektrik Revolver in Germany at the end of June and keeping my fingers crossed that the weather will become warmer, drier and altogether more pleasant.

I am now operating my diary in a new way.
It is currently open for some appointments between August and December of this year.

For more information please contact myself via: inkme@adetatu.com

Anyway here is the last weeks work.

Something for the weekend 26

2013-05-10T11:40:00.003-07:00

Despite working like a madman the last two weeks I have little in the way of photographs.
I do however have a few below to show for my labour's.

As per usual I have been completely sidetracked with other stuff so the website update is still languishing in the wings. I'm going to try and make a concerted effort to resolve the issue this week.

Thanks for taking a look.

Something for the weekend 25

2013-04-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

The last 14 days have flown by, I was caught up in stuff outside work last weekend and it slipped my mind to make a post (doh).

First things first, I have had a Mug Shot interview in Total Tattoo this month, this is a transcription of it:

What would you eat for your last meal on earth?
Hog roast, my love of pork is well known in the shop.

If you won the lottery what is the first thing you would buy?
1st class tickets to Japan, my spiritual homeland. Even with the language barrier I immediately felt at home in Tokyo.
Japan is a culture of contrasts that has keep me enthralled for many years.

Who would play you in the movie of your life?
If resurrection was possible, I'd like it to be Toshiro Mifune, but it's more likely to be Brian the dog from Family Guy.

What song would be the soundtrack to your life?
Music for Eighteen Musicians by Steve Reich. Complex with many layers, however it irritates the buggery out of most people.

What would your super power be?
Thinking before I speak (a herculean task for me) conversely writing this is taking me much longer than I thought it would.

What achievement are you most proud of?
In my personal life it's my son, he is as strong willed as both myself and my wife. It's a joy to see him discovering the world around him.
In my professional life it would be receiving compliments from Japanese Irezumi masters about my work.

What is your biggest regret?
I generally don't do regret, life is too short and I always try and focus on the moment.
If we spent more time concentrating on the here and now, rather than wishing for a return to the 'good old days' maybe we would live in a better world?

What is your favourite tattoo that you have done and why?
The first bodysuit I finished last year, it was the piece that really helped me gain a deeper understanding of Irezumi.
It was the tattoo that saw my work come of age and enabled me to develop me freehand technique.
I owe a great deal to my customer for putting so much faith in me.

What keeps you awake at night?
I can sleep pretty much anywhere, so nothing really. Although sometimes ideas for tattoos or paintings will do it.

What is the best lesson life has taught you?
If you don't ask, you don't get. Make things happen, sitting around waiting for 'your ship' to come in is somewhat pointless.
Grab life and rinse it for all it's worth without doing harm to others.

How would you like to be remembered?
I'd like to be remembered as honest, reliable and being a straight talker.
Although being remembered will be enough.

Finish this sentence:
Ade is always searching out various ways of making things complicated for himself, but who wants an easy life?

I'm putting the final touches to my new look website/blog over the weekend. Hopefully I can get it sorted out by the end of next week.

Finally I managed to move a few tattoos along, here are some pictures of the progress.
Cheers

Something for the weekend 24

2013-04-12T13:18:00.002-07:00

Couldn't get a decent picture of Thursdays work but I'll try and get some when I do more on it in a few weeks.
I also had a last minute cancellation on Wed's so I could only manage to get pictures of two days work.

Moved this Cerberus tattoo along, hopefully one more session will see it finished.
I decided to cover the tribal around the skull but integrate the skull in to a decaying building so the original tattoo didn't look out of place in the new work.

Had a very productive session on this cover up and did all the background and some of the scales.

Like most of my Japanese backgrounds these days I will go back and darken some of the areas that need it. I find I get a much smoother and controlled end product using that method.

Something for the weekend 23

2013-04-06T12:28:00.001-07:00

The last week has been a rather tumultuous one.
I had a few 'issues' with something I found my self embroiled in on IG. Thankfully it is now resolved but it did give me a wake up call and some pause for thought. Mainly about why, where and how I share my work online.
For now, service will run as normal on all fronts. I am looking at making small changes to the way i post images and the new website should be live at some point this week :)

Here is the weeks work.
First off adding background to this pinup (done in Singapore) and giving her a new lick of paint.
Top shot is obviously before we started.

A Tibetan sleeve I'm working on.

Mr Bob Dylan all healed up

Some healed Japanese half sleeves

Finally got a few more hours in on this.

Something for the weekend 22

2013-03-29T12:31:00.002-07:00

Another week passes by. I'd imagine like most of you in the UK I'm getting pretty bored of the cold weather. So I hope the clocks changing this weekend will see a slightly warmer climate develop.

I'm working on a few cover-up's at the moment, but I did manage to get more done on the Rakan/dragon sleeve and got some healed pictures of a 3/4 sleeve and chest tattoo.

Not much else going on outside of work, I'm struggling to find the motivation for other projects. So I suspect the blog will be mainly about my current tattooing for a while.

Thanks for looking.

Something for the weekend 21

2013-03-22T12:34:00.001-07:00

Apologies for the missed post last week but after moving house and having a heavy head cold combined with the million other things I had to do it fell by the wayside.

I did manage to get a cool pic of the drainpipe at work on the day of the snow.

I have also confirmed dates for my guest spot at Elektrik Revolver. If you live near Brunswick in Germany or Berlin (2hrs on the train I'm told) and you would like some work please email the shop for an appointment:
info@elektrik-revlover.de

Only managed three pictures of work the last two weeks. I've done a few other bits but the quality of the photographs was pretty shitty. So I'll share the tattoos once I have better images.

Something for the weekend 20

2013-03-08T11:23:00.003-08:00

First off apologies for missing last weeks post. I'm moving house this coming Monday so work outside of actually tattooing has taken a bit of a back seat.

This weeks post is limited to images as I'm still embroiled in packing etc. Hopefully the next post will see a return to normal service.

Thanks for looking.

Something for the weekend 19

2013-02-22T11:27:00.000-08:00

I've certainly had a busy February so far!! Two big conventions and lots of tattooing, it's taken it's toll for sure, but it feels worth it.

First things first, Brighton convention was a blast, the new venue is much better and felt much more spacious. Having everything under one roof was a huge bonus. I would highly recommend going next year and I will most certainly be working it again.

I was also lucky enough to win a small award (Highly Commended) for the Baku I did on the Saturday

I managed to squeeze in two Namakubi (severed heads) which I enjoyed very much. The first one was freehanded on. I used a stencil for number two because it was from a biro doodle I had done.

In other news my interview on Ladies and Ink was posted, clicking on the picture will take you there.

The skateboard is finally finished and up for sale. You can contact me via the shop for more info on price etc: inkme@nineboycesstreet.com

Finally here are some pictures of what I've worked on in the shop.

Ladies and Ink interview

2013-02-19T22:59:00.002-08:00

Ladies and Ink are featuring male tattooists for the month of February. I'm happy to say that I was asked to talk about my work.
You can see the interview by following the link.
https://ladiesandink.jux.com/954999

Milan convention

2013-02-11T10:50:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update. The Milan convention was an absolute blast and if you have the inclination I would highly recommend it as something to visit. I had a really nice time meeting up with old friends and making a few new ones.
I managed to get a couple of cool freehand tattoos done alongside some doodles.

Brighton is this weekend, I hope to see some of you there. I'm fully booked, but I will have some prints and original artwork for sale. If I look busy don't worry about disturbing me as it's all part of working a convention.

Cheers

Fake Sushi :)

Something for the weekend 18

2013-02-01T11:38:00.001-08:00

This week has been on the quiet side. With the Milan and Brighton conventions looming ever nearer I decided to take things a bit easier to conserve energy for the madness.
Indeed this time next week I'll be in Italy and hopefully working on a tattoo. So the blog will be next updated the Friday before the Brighton convention.

I did manage to get some cool work done this week and another tattoo that I forgot to take pictures of is shaping up nicely.

I've also been asked to contribute my work to a blog that features female tattooist, for the month of February it is showcasing male tattooists, so I was honored to share my thoughts and work.
Once the article is published I will post a direct link, for those that wish to check out the site now (which I highly recommend) this is a link: https://ladiesandink.jux.com/

Something for the weekend 17

2013-01-25T11:24:00.000-08:00

I can hardly believe January is nearly over and in less than two weeks I will be working at the Milan Tattoo Convention. The first convention of the year and my first one outside of the UK. I'm a curious mixture of excited and nervous about working alongside some of the biggest names in tattooing, some of whom have a had a big impact on my work.

The above reason and flat hunting have seen the rather sporadic start to this years posts. I'm doing my best to keep track of things but I can foresee the next couple of months will result in intermittent posting.
Hopefully life will settle back to some sort of normality in March and I can focus a bit more on this side of things.

Below is last weeks work with some of this weeks. Although I've neglected this blog I'm really pleased with how the tattooing is going. I'm slowly removing all stencils from my work and as many of you know I do a fair bit of my work by drawing it on. The severed heads and snake piece bring me a step closer to working in a way that all tattooists did before the invention of stencils. It's challenging and time consuming to do everything without stencils but I think the end result and 'feeling' you get is worth the effort.

Thanks for reading and I'll try and keep up with a weekly post.
Cheers

Something for the weekend 16

2013-01-11T11:51:00.004-08:00

The first post of the year, it's a little later than I imagined it would be. I have lots of 'balls' in the air at the moment so the blog was put on hold until now.

Apart form having a nice relaxing break over Christmas and New Year, not much has happened. It was my first week back and I've started a few new pieces which is always nice. Looking forward to doing more on the bigger pieces I'm working on with renewed energy.

I was also lucky enough to have a double page spread in this months Total Tattoo.

Enjoy the New Year folks.

A quick drawing from today, done using Pentel Brush pens.

Something for the weekend 15

2012-12-21T12:21:00.002-08:00

This week has really had me thinking about how I share my work on the internet and how others treat the images.
You will all be aware that I use instagram and facebook amongst others as sharing platforms. Over the last few months all free to use services have slowly changed their terms of use. Whilst I'm ok with them using an image for advertising I'm not so happy with them selling an image to a third party. As it turns out this was the result of a badly written paragraph in the tos, but it could happen so I'm future proofing somewhat.

After considering my position on how best to move forward I've decided to mark my images.
Watermarking photos is something I've avoided, because I prefer the honour system of life, and except that although some people will rip you off, most are genuine and can be trusted.
I find myself adding them in an attempt to protect my work from misuse by individuals re-posting the work without any credit to myself, which I'd say is at least as bad (if not worse) as the free sites changing the terms so they can sell an image to a third party.
I hope that this wont detract too much from the enjoyment of looking at my artwork, but I'm getting really fed up with seeing my images on different sites without getting any credit for the hours of effort I put into my tattoos, drawings etc.

Whilst thinking about all the discussion/hype around the issue on instagram's new terms of service it dawned on me that I and others have become lazy and far too relient on free services for promoting our work. I suspect alongside the ease of use the allure of hits, likes and positive comments help fuel the ego and the whole thing becomes slightly addictive.
Although it's a pleasurable experience I've found that updating several social networks eats into my time and the subsequent follow up further adds to the time 'needed'. All this means less focus on projects that could be done quicker, or having actual free time for sitting around thinking or writing for this blog.

In the short term I'm going to carry on posting on Instagram, Facebook etc. However over time I would love this blog/website to be the only source for my images online. Weather that will become the case largely depends on feedback from customers and how the other sites intend on using the images I post on their services.

On to the last seven days work. Only a couple are watermarked this time and I'd be interested in hearing any feedback about the watermarks.

Cheers and Happy Christmas to those of you that celebrate it.

Something for the weekend 14

2012-12-14T11:47:00.000-08:00

Christmas is just around the corner and I'm looking forward to time off with my family and hopefully catching up on and finishing a few projects (my online store for one) This weeks post is going to be a short one, I'm working on the Fudo image and spending time at the computer is keeping me away from it. So apologies for the brevity of this weeks ramble.

I also had a few days off this past week so the amount of tattooing I've done is somewhat limited. I did however manage to finish of the psychedelic space tattoo. I'm very pleased with it, although we may return to it and add in a few details of darker areas in the new year.

Pushed the Shishi sleeve along today, we will be finishing it in a week or so. Really looking forward to seeing todays work healed.

Something for the weekend 13

2012-12-07T12:56:00.000-08:00

So Christmas looms ever nearer and I'm reminded how quickly this year has flown by!! At least I've achieved some of the things I set out to do and failed at others (generally less important goals) you win some and lose some I guess?

This week has seen me finish two tattoos, do more an a backpiece, start a new cover up and the left arm on the Fudo body suit. On top of trying to organise myself in some way to prepare for the onslaught of next years projects :) The beginning of the year promises to be a hectic one on both a work and personal front.

Hopefully this coming week my online store will be going live and I can make some progress on the Fudo print. I'm also waiting for better light so I can get good photos of the skateboard.

Here is the weeks work, hope you enjoy it and thanks for looking.

The carp below was completed over two session and was a total of between 7.5/8 hours work.

This snake was 100% freehand adding to the half sleeve (also freehand and a snake design) again it was over two session and of a similar time to the carp above.

Something for the weekend 12

2012-11-30T11:36:00.000-08:00

Well that week went by super fast!!

The past seven days have seen the usual drawing and tattooing (images below). I have however been thinking about travel and how it broadens not only our 'world view' but how in my case it's reinvigorated my love of craft and art in general.
Working in Brighton is great, however for myself I don't really have other people around me that shares my passion for Japanese artwork and in particular Irezumi. Whilst planning out my work travels for next year it struck me how much I'm looking forward to spending time with people on the same 'path' as me. I'm really keen to learn a few tricks and discover new references to broaden my horizons.
With that in mind I'm trying out some new techniques on the Fudo Myo image. The final picture will be monochrome with gold details. I'm making prints which will be limited, signed, numbered and come with a certificate (stop any bloody unofficial copies surfacing)
The original will be up for sale at the Brighton Tattoo Convention (if it's still available) alongside other prints and original artwork.

If anyone is coming to the convention please stop by and say hello, it often looks like I'm busy but I'm always happy to have a quick chat and can be easily bribed with junk food :D

This is something a little different for me and it was lots of fun to do.

This sleeve is fully healed and we will be doing the other arm next year :)

Got a good session on this, should be close to finished on the next one.

Something for the weekend 11

2012-11-23T08:40:00.000-08:00

With the family away this week, I've had the chance to spend time thinking about my work and not really doing much. Whilst it's always fun I've found that I haven't really achieved much outside of expanding my waistline :)

I think I must be getting old? in fact I'm now middle aged, 40 is looming on the horizon (next spring) plus I'm in my thirteenth year as a tattooist. Instead of thinking it's time to relax, the thought of turning 40 is spurring me on to new challenges and has given me new focus in my work. Maybe life does begin now? it's certainly looking good from were I'm sat :)

I made a start on a new cover up, this is at the end of session one.

I finished work early one day and thought the view from the window was worth taking. The shorter days are beginning to make me feel like hibernating, or moving to a part of the world where sunshine is 'guaranteed'. I really hope we get some decent snow this year, if it's wet all winter I'm going to be pretty pissed off.

I'm getting closer to finishing the skateboard. It will be up for sale soon and the aceo's will be going up on my new shop asap (hopefully next week) Anyway here are a few shots of the progress so far.

Something for the weekend 10

2012-11-16T11:41:00.003-08:00

After having a break for my holiday I'm finding it tricky to find anything to share (other than this weeks tattooing)
Having a break did allow me space to think about next year and plan out a couple of biggish, and for now top secret projects. I'm also making plans to travel to a couple of countries in Europe and work some guest spots. Germany is all but sorted and I'm trying to arrange one in a Scandinavian country or possibly Spain/Italy for later next year.

My new website is nearing completion and the blog will be included into it. I'm really pleased with the way it looks and can't wait for you guys to see it. I hope it makes visiting the page a more visually pleasing experience.

Here are this weeks tattoos, the Goldfish and snake addition to the half sleeve are freehand. The koi were stenciled on to save time, but the waves etc are drawn on, the Shishi is the second session.

Something for the weekend 9

2012-10-27T11:57:00.000-07:00

This week has seen me mostly getting ready for a well deserved break.
On the subject of holiday I wont be doing another post for a couple of weeks as I need time to recharge the batteries, but expect normal service to return mid November.

Whilst on instagram I did come across some videos that I think are a great representation of how a tattoo program can be made, when done with respect for the tradition.
http://gypsygentleman.com/#/episode5

I tried to share the videos here (but failed) I strongly urge everyone to give them a shot as they show great tattoosit's doing what they do best, without all the bloody drama, etc etc.

I also managed to get some drawing and tattooing done this last week. I did this chest plate in one sitting (about three and a half hours tattooing)

I also moved this along, one more session will see this finished.

Something for the weekend 8

2012-10-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I really find it hard to believe how quickly the weeks pass by, and this one felt especially quick!
Keeping on top of work and other projects has left me struggling slightly to find anything to share this week. With that in mind I'm posting some pictures from my instagram account, it's worth checking it out if you have never given it a look. I find it a pretty nice way of searching for inspiration.

I was also 'digging' around in my photos and found a few more pictures from Japan, hope you like them.

Something for the weekend 7

2012-10-12T11:21:00.000-07:00

First of this week, I am going to share my schedule for the first half of next year:

Milano Tattoo Convention
8, 9, 10 of February

Brighton Tattoo Convention
16, 17 of February

In the second half of June I will be guesting at a shop in Germany (details will come nearer the time)

I of course will be in the shop working hard and continuing to work on new projects.
This week has seen me progress with the skateboard and start a new sleeve of Shishi.

I'm also trying to do quick drawings before tattooing most are around the 10/15 minute mark. They are an excellent way to sharpen my mind before I begin work and they give me the chance to try ideas without any pressure. The paper is approximately 8cm square (the snakes are wider) and I use a good old Biro, no pencil underneath just straight in with pen.